“Bring the pneumatic gun forward,” he commanded.
Two men brought the cylinder of steel and its pivotal carriage forward. It was quickly mounted in the bow.
The connections were made with the pneumatic chambers and the dynamos.
Then Frank placed a projectile in the breech. He trained the gun upon the blocked channel.
One moment he drew the sights, then he pressed the electric button. The effect was thrilling.
The shell struck fair in the midst of the ice-blocks. There was a terrible crash—a sullen, thunderous roar.
Up into the air one hundred feet went a column of water and ice fragments. It was a marvelous spectacle.
The ship pitched and rocked violently. Then Frank sent another shell into the heap.
The ice-jam gave way. For fully five hundred yards the channel was open. A northward current moved the crushed ice rapidly away and in an hour’s time the channel was clear as far as the eye could reach.
The Pearl sailed out into the channel amid the cheers of the crew.